Alcoholism, also known as "alcohol dependence", is a disease that includes four symptoms:

Craving: A strong need, or compulsion, to drink. Behavior may include a person feeling like he/she "needs" a drink or drinking every day or night.

Loss of control: The inability to limit one's drinking on any given occasion. Behavior may include not stopping after one or two drinks, person drinks until drunk.

Physical dependence: The experience of withdrawal symptoms. Behavior may include nausea, sweating, shakiness and anxiety, when alcohol use is stopped after a period of heavy drinking.

Tolerance: The need to drink greater amounts of alcohol in order to "relax" or take the "edge off". Behavior may include using larger amounts of alcohol or drugs to "escape" from stress or problems.
Alcohol abuse differs from alcoholism in that it does not include an extremely strong craving for alcohol, loss of control over drinking, or physical dependence.

Alcohol abuse is defined as a pattern of drinking that results in one or more of the following situations within a 12-month period:

	Failure to fulfill major work, school, or home responsibilities;
	Drinking in situations that are physically dangerous, such as driving a car or operating machinery;
	Having recurring alcohol-related legal problems, such as being arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol or for physically hurting someone while drunk;
	Continued drinking despite having ongoing relationship problems that are caused or worsened by the drinking.

Although alcohol abuse is different from alcoholism, alcoholics also experience many effects of alcohol abuse.

Binge Drinking
What is binge drinking?
“ Binge” drinking is considered to be 5 or more drinks for males, and 4 or more drinks for females, during a two-hour period where Blood Alcohol Content exceeds .08%.

What’s the big deal about binge drinking?
There is growing concern throughout the nation, California, and Santa Barbara County, about the following problems associated with binge drinking.

• Vehicular accidents and death
• Physical injuries and hospitalization
• Academic failure
• Fighting/ bullying
• Trouble with police
• Health problems
• Sexual assault
• Unprotected sex
• Early onset of addiction
• Suicide, mental health problems
• Homicide and other criminal activity

Why do people binge drink?

	College campuses have a youth culture “norm” of heavy drinking
	Availability – Alcohol & drugs may be more prevalent due to high concentrations of liquor stores, bars, clubs; and willingness of siblings, students or homeless to buy alcohol for youth
	Promotion– Approximately $5 billion is spent on promotion and marketing of Alcoholic Beverages each year, creating a Positive Image of alcohol use as normal
	Role modeling –A cultural norm of alcohol consumption says “it’s ok to drink”
	Excessive drinking may be seen as an initiation, or “right of passage” (such as college initiation rites)
	Tourist beach towns may have a high concentration of bars / clubs in some areas
	Santa Barbara has a “Party Town” image: beach, surfers, girls, drinking = fun
	Stress Control –There is a perception that intoxication relieves stress
	Social Lubricant – Feeling a sense of ease and reducing inhibitions to meet and socialize with peers

% of alcohol varies depending on the manufacturer.
Other Things to Keep in Mind
22.oz beer = 1.8 drinks
40.oz bottle = 3.3 drinks
Keg Cup (16oz) = 1.3 drinks
Malt Liquor 22.oz beer = 2.75 drinks
40.oz bottle = 5.0 drinks
Hard Alcohol
1 Pint 80 proof = 13 drinks
1 pint 100 proof = 16 drinks
1 fifth 80 proof = 22 drinks
1 fifth 100 proof = 27 drinks
*All shot glasses are not the same size. Know how much yours really holds.

How much binge drinking is going on among college students in Santa Barbara?

UCSB Students:

• 52.7 % of students (65.0 % of drinkers) report binge drinking during previous two weeks
• 20.9 % of students who drank past semester/quarter report some form of public misconduct, such as trouble with police, fighting/argument, DUI, vandalism, at least once
• 51.9 % of students who drank past semester/quarter report some serious personal problems such as suicidal ideation, injury, unsuccessful attempts to stop using, sexual assault
• 68.4 % of students who drank past semester/quarter report experiencing minor personal problems such as missing class, memory loss, hangover, vomiting at least once

Source: South Illinois Institutes Prevention Research Center Survey administered in 2003.

SBCC Students:

• 52 % of students reported 5 or more drinks (binge drinking) in last two weeks
• 56 % of students reported consuming 5+ drinks at their last social function
• 34 % of students drove after drinking in the last 30 days
• 47 % of students did something they regretting as a result of drinking in the last 12 months
• 29 % reported physically injuring themselves as a result of drinking in the last 12 months
• 40 % forgot where they were & what they did as a result of drinking in the last 12 months
• 47 % of students did something they regretted as a result of drinking in the last 12 months

Source: National College Health Assessment Survey administered by 2003, Developed by the American College Health Association

Problems in Isla Vista:
In 2005, there were a total of 3,119 Alcohol and/or Other Drug (AOD) Citations and 598 AOD arrests in Isla Vista. In addition, there were 7,236 citations and 791 arrests in which alcohol or drugs were involved.
Of 7,236 incidents:

• 1,572 were for disturbances/fights
• 177 were for assaults
• 165 were violations of drug laws
• 44 were vandalism

Source: F.Wittman, Santa Barbara County SIG Grant

What are some of the local solutions being pursued?

Community Level

• Isla Vista Alcohol and Other Drug Council identifies and addresses AOD problems, solutions and strategies.
• Parks Ordinance was advocated and adopted in 2004. The Parks Ordinance limits alcohol use in parks.
• Isla Vista Teen Center mobilizes the community to create safer neighborhoods free of alcohol and drugs.

Residential Level

• Social Host Training to identify high-risk residential settings and teach responsible social hosting to reduce binge drinking and related problems.
• Advocate for Property Owners to include language in their leases that addresses problems relating to binge drinking on rented property.
• Notify Property Owners and Managers of police responses to events at their properties.

Retail Level

• Keg Registration Law and Procedure was advocated, implemented and enforced in 2004. The purchaser’s contact information is recorded in keg receipt book at retail store and kept for 6 months; keg tag (sticker) is placed on keg by cashier w/corresponding number added to keg receipt book; sticker identifies off-sale licensee.
• IV AOD Council is pursuing Isla Vista Conditional Use Permit that would use land authority to address over concentration of alcohol outlets; establish controls on the number of off-sales licenses; establish criteria for approving new licenses.
• Develop Responsible Beverage Service (RBS) training for businesses with on-sale and off-sale licenses.
• Enforce conditions and regulations of alcohol sales licenses, including but not limited to: sales to minors and sales to obviously intoxicated persons.

Individual Level

• Alcohol and Other Drug Screening and Brief Intervention at UCSB Student Health Services and Goleta Valley Cottage Hospital to increase the number of students entering early intervention programs for binge drinking and related problems.
• Host Training teaches individuals to identify high-risk environments and responsible social hosting to reduce binge drinking and related problems.
• UCSB sends letters of concern to students and notifies their parents in cases where a UCSB undergraduate is arrested or cited for an alcohol or other drug offense. Since 2004, the Dean of Students has required students with a repeat offense to see an alcohol and drug counselor.
• Other UCSB Alcohol and Drug Initiatives include but are not limited to: College Alcohol Skills Education Program (CASE); Skills, Awareness, & Motivation (SAM) Program, Drop-In Groups; Brief Motivational Interviewing; Parent Education on Alcohol and Drugs; E-Newsletters; Orientation Presentations; Web-Based Alcohol and Other Drug Educational Assessment Tool; Late Night Alternative Social Programming; Safer California Universities: A Multi-Campus Alcohol Problem Prevention Study; Halloween Parking Restrictions; Expansion of Alcohol and Drug Education for Greeks; Support for New House IV; Extension of Jurisdiction.

Drinking and Driving
What’s the big deal about drinking and driving?
You lose your judgment when you drink alcohol or use drugs. It is often the first thing about you that changes. Loss of judgment, or good sense, affects how you react to sounds, what you see, and the speed of other vehicles around you.

It takes about one hour for the body to get rid of each “drink.” If a person has had more than one drink an hour, one hour of “sobering up” time should be allowed for each extra drink. Better still, someone who has not been drinking should drive. (See information about the Designated Driver Program.)

Drugs And Driving
Much of what has been said about alcohol also applies to drugs. California’s drunk driving law is also a drug driving law.
It refers to “driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs.”
If an officer suspects you are under the influence of drugs, the officer can require you to take a blood or urine test. Drivers who refuse these tests are subject to longer license suspensions and revocations. Anyone convicted of possessing, selling, or manufacturing illegal drugs is subject to a six-month suspension.

The use of any drug (and the law does not distinguish between prescription, over-the-counter, or illegal drugs), which impairs your ability to drive safely, is illegal. Check with your physician or pharmacist and read the warning label if you are not sure you should drive after taking any medication. (CA Driver Handbook, www.dmv.ca.gov)

• Some drugs, such as those used for colds and allergies, or to calm nerves or muscles, can make a person drowsy.
• Medicines taken together, or combined with alcohol, can be dangerous or have unexpected side effects.
• “Uppers” and diet pills can make a driver more alert for a short time. Later, they may cause an inability to concentrate or affect vision.
• Any drug that “may cause drowsiness or dizziness” is one you should not take before driving.
• Read labels. Know the effects of drugs. To learn the rules about drinking and driving, visit: www. dmv.ca.gov/pubs/hdbk
  http://duilawyers.org/alcohol-impairment-chart.html

More About Drinking and Driving
Prof. David J. Hanson, Ph.D., has done intensive research on the drinking and driving problem. Here are some life-saving tips from Dr. Hanson, recommended by many experts in the prevention field:

	Call a cab
	Take your drunk friend’s keys
	Provide food at a party
	Cut-off alcohol service 1-2 hours before a party ends
	Offer guests a place to sleep
	Purchase cars with airbags and other safety features

Small things can save lives.
Dr. Hanson’s research showed that high Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) drivers tend to be male, aged 25-35, and have a history of Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) convictions and polydrug abuse.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that 18-20% of injured drivers are using drugs and although drinking is on the decline, drugging is on the increase.

Dr. Hanson suggests consumers look at improving traffic safety by driving cars with air bags, and improving roadways with elevated yellow divider lines and corrugated shoulders so driver’s are warned by a loud noise when they drift off the highway.

As for jail and prison sentences for alcohol offenses, Hanson’s research showed that stiff fines appear to be of little value in deterring HIGH BAC drivers. Such sentences may deter low BAC drinkers, but such drivers are not the problem. Incarceration is probably ineffective with high BAC drivers, who tend to be alcohol dependent individuals with very serious problems who need treatment.”

For more of Dr. Hanson’s insights, go to: http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/DrinkingAndDriving.html

Why do otherwise responsible people get behind the wheel after drinking alcohol?

“ I’m fine, I can drive. ”

How often have we heard people say: “I’m fine, I can drive.”

People may want to appear strong, independent and capable. When someone is “under the influence,” judgment is impaired.

Alcohol can create a false sense of confidence.

Every day we hear of another friend, neighbor or family-member killed or injured in an auto crash after drinking.

Hosts sometimes offer their guests a place to sleep, only to have their offer refused with “No, I’m fine, I can drive myself home.”

It is important for each person to know when his/her blood alcohol content is at a level to impair reflexes, response time, judgment, vision and basically their ability to operate a moving vehicle when impaired.

How much alcohol in what amount of time takes a person over the legal limit?

What’s the definition of a drink?
A drink is considered to be 12 oz. of beer, an “alcopop” or flavored malt beverage, 5 oz. of table wine or a shot of hard liquor (like tequila, vodka or rum).

One drink is generally the equivalent of 1.5 oz. of 80-proof liquor.

Many specialty drinks served at restaurants or bars, like special margaritas, cosmopolitans and long island iced tea, contain more than 1 shot.

Note: “Alcopops” and flavored alcoholic beverages and malt liquors, are considered to be the drink of choice for underage teens – especially girls. These drinks often come in colorful, child-oriented packaging with sweet-flavors that hide the taste of alcohol. These drinks are a growing concern in public health, as the flavoring makes them easy to consume for the uninitiated drinker.

How fast do people get drunk?

You can become intoxicated in less than one hour if you have not eaten, if you are small, if you are elderly, or if your body metabolizes alcohol at a slow rate.

It takes about one hour to get rid of each drink.

Contrary to popular opinion, coffee is not a true solution to “sober up fast”. Peak blood alcohol concentrations are achieved in fasting people within 0.5 to 2.0 hours (average 0.75 - 1.35 hours depending upon dose and time of last meal). Non-fasting people exhibit peak alcohol concentrations within 1.0, and in extreme cases up to as much as 6.0 hours (average 1.06 - 2.12 hours).

As a rule of thumb, a person will eliminate one average drink or .5 oz (15 ml) of alcohol per hour. Several factors influence this rate. The rate of elimination tends to be higher when the blood alcohol concentration in the body is very high or very low. Also, chronic alcoholics may (depending on liver health) metabolize alcohol at a significantly higher rate than average. Finally, the body's ability to metabolize alcohol quickly tends to diminish with age.

How much alcohol does it take to push the average person over the legal limit?

http://www.duilawyers.org/alcohol-impairment-chart.html

Bicycling:
Bicycle crashes are a growing problem in Santa Barbara and in the U.S. Safe practices include wearing a helmet, and riding sober.

In California, 22,441 people were severely injured and 619 killed in bicycle-related crashes between 1996-2000. Sadly, the lifetime costs to care for one person with a traumatic brain injury can exceed $4.6 million.

(Source: CA Dept. of Health Services, Epidemiology and Prevention for Injury Control Branch. -EPIC)

Motorcycles:
The new statistics show that in 2005, there were 12,945 fatalities in crashes involving a driver or motorcycle operator with a BAC of .08 or higher, the legal limit throughout the U.S. Fully, 39 percent of all traffic deaths last year involved alcohol. All told, 16,885 people died in alcohol-related crashes. NHTSA also released state-by-state statistics for alcohol-related fatalities.

Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)

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Before You Risk It
Know the law. Methamphetamine is illegal in all states and is highly dangerous.

Get the facts. The ignitable, corrosive, and toxic nature of the chemicals used to produce meth can cause fires, produce toxic vapors, and damage the environment.

Stay informed. 92 percent of methamphetamine deaths reported in 1994 involved meth in combination with another drug, such as alcohol, heroin, or cocaine.

Know the risks. There are a lot of risks associated with using methamphetamine, including:

• Meth can cause a severe "crash" after the effects wear off.
• Meth use can cause irreversible damage to blood vessels in the brain.
• Meth users who inject the drug and share needles are at risk for acquiring HIV/AIDS.

Look around you. Everybody doesn't think it's okay to take methamphetamine. A 1999 National High School Survey indicates that over 80 percent of teens disapprove of using meth even once or twice.

Know the Signs
How can you tell if a friend is using meth? It may not be easy to tell, but there are signs you can look for. Symptoms of methamphetamine use may include:

• Inability to sleep
• Increased sensitivity to noise
• Nervous physical activity, like scratching
• Irritability, dizziness, or confusion
• Extreme anorexia
• Tremors or even convulsions
• Increased heart rate, blood pressure, and risk of stroke
• Presence of inhaling paraphernalia, such as razor blades, mirrors, and straws
• Presence of injecting paraphernalia, such as syringes, heated spoons, or surgical tubing

What can you do to help someone who is using meth?
Be a real friend. You might even save a life. Encourage your friend to stop or seek professional help. Counselors are available at the 211 Helpline to help callers find the service that best meets their needs.

Questions and Answers
Q. Isn't methamphetamine less harmful than crack, cocaine, or heroin?
A. Some users get hooked the first time they snort, smoke, or inject meth. Because it can be made from lethal ingredients like battery acid, drain cleaner, lantern fuel, and antifreeze, there is a greater chance of suffering a heart attack, stroke, or serious brain damage with this drug than with other drugs.

Q. Isn't using methamphetamine like using diet pills?
A. No. Though it is easily attainable, methamphetamine is dangerous and addictive. Between 1993 and 1995, deaths due to meth rose 125 percent. Between 1996 and 1997, meth-related emergency room visits doubled. Use by 12- to 17-year-olds has increased dramatically in the past few years.

The bottom line: If you know someone who uses meth, urge him or her to get help. If you're using meth--stop! The longer you ignore the real facts, the more chances you take with your life.

It's never too late. Talk to your parents, a doctor, a counselor, a teacher, or another adult you trust.

To find out more about Meth, view the Meth page or take the Quiz.


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By using steroids, you bulk up by increasing growth hormone levels like testosterone. But as a teen, you already have all the testosterone and energy that you need to bulk up and reduce body fat! Starting at puberty, your testosterone levels increase rapidly, peak at 20, and stay level until around 40. Nature has already given you everything you need. All you have to do is exercise, eat healthy, and sleep!

Remember, more-and-more high schools and all colleges test their athletes for steroids. Not only will testing positive for steroids cause a student to be banned from sports, it could also cause his/her team to forfeit a game or entire season.

Whether it’s steroids or weight loss supplements, drug dealers and drug companies all claim to have the answer to happiness through products that claim to improve our bodies. But they never tell you about the price that you can pay: the cancers, depression, liver damage, acne, balding, or anger that can result. Happiness and athletic success don’t come from a pill or needle; they come from hard work and practice!

About Steroids
There are many kinds of steroids, but when you hear about them in the news in relation to sports, “doping,” or performance enhancement, they almost always mean Anabolic-androgenic steroids. These are man-made substances that are related to male sex hormones such as testosterone (the same stuff that make boys start puberty).

When used legally, these drugs help patients who do not produce enough natural testosterone, or whose muscles are wasting away from a debilitating disease like AIDS or injury such as paralysis. Any use without a prescription can lead to serious health problems, some irreversible, even death.

Often patients who carefully use steroids with the direction of a doctor, still have negative side affects.

Get the Facts
Steroids affect your heart. Steroid abuse has been associated with cardiovascular disease, including heart attack and stroke. These heart problems can even happen to athletes under the age of 30.

Steroids affect your liver and kidneys. Steroids can cause high blood pressure and kidney and liver tumors. Steroid use can also cause blood-filled cysts to develop in the liver. Both the tumors and cysts can rupture, causing internal bleeding.

Steroids affect your appearance. In both sexes, steroids can cause male-pattern baldness, cysts, acne, and oily hair and skin.

Steroids can affect your growth. Under normal conditions, sex hormones trigger growth spurts during puberty and also signal the body to stop growing when they reach a certain level. When teens take steroids, the resulting high sex hormone levels can signal bones to prematurely stop growing, stunting the user's growth.

Steroids affect gender-specific features:

For girls - growing of facial hair, shrinking of the breasts, deepened voice, masculine changes in the shape of the face, and cessation of the menstrual cycle.

For guys - shrinking of the testicles, development of breasts, and infertility.

Steroids affect your mood. Steroids can make you angry and hostile for no reason. This is commonly referred to as “roid rage.” This can also include suicidal thoughts and/or attempts, fatigue, restlessness, loss of appetite, and insomnia. There are many cases of steroids causing users to become violent towards themselves and others, and some users developed behavioral problems that were so extreme that they could not function within their workplace or society.

Steroids increase your risk of infection. Sharing needles or using dirty needles to inject steroids puts you at risk for diseases such as HIV/AIDS and hepatitis. Because many steroids are imported illegally, they can be tainted with bacteria, toxins, or other dangerous byproducts.

Steroids are addictive. Withdrawal symptoms include mood swings, suicidal thoughts and/or attempts, fatigue, restlessness, loss of appetite, desire to take more steroids, and insomnia.

Before You Risk It
Know the law. Steroids are illegal to possess without a prescription from a licensed physician. It is illegal for individuals to sell steroids.

Get the facts. Doctors prescribe steroids for specific medical conditions and are only safe for use when a doctor monitors the patient. Monthly blood tests are required to check for liver damage.

Know the risks. Illegal steroids are made overseas and smuggled into the United States or made in underground labs in this country. They pose greater health risks because they are not regulated by the government and may not be pure or labeled correctly.

Look around you. The majority of teens aren't using steroids. Among teenage males, where most steroid use is concentrated, past year use was reported by 1.1 percent of 8th graders, 1.3 percent of 10th graders, and 1.5 percent of 12th graders.

Know the Signs
How can you tell if a friend is abusing steroids? Sometimes it's hard to tell, but there are signs you can look for. If your friend has one or more of the following warning signs, he or she may be abusing steroids:

For Guys:
• Baldness
• Development of breasts
• Impotence

For Girls:
• Growth of facial hair
• Deepened voice
• Breast reduction

For Both:
• Jaundice (yellowing of the skin)
• Swelling of feet or ankles
• Aching joints
• Bad breath
• Mood swings
• Nervousness
• Trembling


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What is it?
Marijuana is a green or gray mixture of dried, shredded flowers and leaves of the hemp plant Cannabis Sativa. It can be eaten in certain foods or smoked. It is an illegal drug.

What does it do?
The effects vary from person to person depending on how strong the marijuana is, how it's taken, and whether other drugs or alcohol are involved. At first, pot can make people feel relaxed, in a good mood and even silly. Users will likely experience dry mouth, rapid heartbeat, some loss of coordination and poor sense of balance, and slower reaction times, along with intoxication. Blood vessels in the eye will expand causing the red-eye effect. NIDA

Smoking marijuana may impair short-term memory while people are using the drug. This happens because all forms of marijuana contain THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol), the main active chemical in marijuana, which alters the way the brain works. After a few minutes, paranoia or anxiousness may set in, then intense hunger (a.k.a. the munchies), and finally, sleepiness. NCADI For some people, marijuana raises blood pressure slightly and can double the normal heart rate. This effect can be greater when other drugs are mixed with marijuana.

Have you seen Marijuana affect people? Share here.

Who uses it?
Marijuana is the most widely used illegal drug in the United States. Fewer than one in four high school seniors say they are current users. Between 1991 and 2001, the number of 8th graders who used marijuana doubled from one in ten to one in five. Monitoring the Future, 1975-1999. What would you do if someone offered you pot? Take a trial run through our scenarios so you'll be prepared. Click here.

Marijuana affects memory, judgment and perception even in the short-term, as was found in a study conducted by Pope and Yurgelun-Todd published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. It can mess you up in school, in sports or clubs, or with your friends. Several studies, including one reported a few years ago in the American Journal of Public Health, indicate that if you're high on marijuana, you are more likely to do things that could embarrass or even hurt you-such as driving under the influence or engaging in risky sexual behaviors. For athletes, THC's effect on timing, coordination, and movement-which can last for several hours-can seriously hurt performance. NCADI

Over the long term, smoking pot can cause you to lose interest in how you look and how you're getting along at school or work. NCADI It can also be much worse for your respiratory health than smoking cigarettes; the amount of tar, carbon monoxide, and cancer-causing chemicals inhaled in marijuana smoke are three to five times greater than that inhaled from the same amount of tobacco smoke. (NIDA Infofax)

It's important also to remember that marijuana is an addictive drug, responsible for about 60% of all the teenagers who seek admission to drug treatment centers in the U.S. Smoking marijuana leads to some changes in the brain similar to those caused by cocaine, heroin and alcohol. (Di Chiara's study-in NIDA information). Research at the University of Columbia demonstrates that people who regularly smoke marijuana experience withdrawal symptoms after they stop using it.

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Some people experiment with prescription drugs because they think they will help them have more fun, lose weight, fit in, and even study more effectively. Prescription drugs can be easier to get than street drugs: Family members or friends could have a prescription. But prescription drugs are also sometimes sold on the street like other illegal drugs. A 2003 National Survey on Drug Use and Health showed that among all youths aged 12 to 17; almost a quarter had tried prescription drugs for recreational use at least once.

Why? Some people think that prescription drugs are safer and less addictive than street drugs. After all, these are drugs that moms, dads, and even kid brothers and sisters use. To Angie, taking her brother's ADHD medicine felt like a good way to keep her appetite in check. She'd heard how bad diet pills could be, and she wrongly thought that the ADHD drugs would be safer.

But prescription drugs are only safe for the individuals who actually have prescriptions for them. That's because a doctor has examined these people and knows that they won't have a bad reaction to the drugs. The doctor has also told them exactly how they should take the medicine, including things to avoid while taking the drug - such as drinking alcohol, smoking, or taking other medications.

Other people who try prescription drugs are like Todd. They think they're not doing anything illegal because doctors prescribe these drugs. But taking drugs without a prescription - or sharing a prescription drug with friends - is actually breaking the law.

Which Drugs Are Abused?
The most commonly used prescription drugs fall into three classes:

• Opioids
• Examples: Oxycodone (OxyContin), hydrocodone (Vicodin), and meperidine (Demerol).
• Medical uses: Opioids are used to treat pain or relieve coughs or diarrhea.
• How they work: Opioids attach to opioid receptors in the central nervous system (the brain and the spinal cord), preventing the brain from receiving pain messages.
  
  Central Nervous System (CNS) Depressants
• Examples: Pentobarbital sodium (Nembutal), diazepam (Valium), and alprazolam (Xanax).
• Medical uses: CNS depressants are used to treat anxiety, tension, panic attacks, and sleep disorders.
• How they work: CNS depressants slow down brain activity by increasing the activity of a neurotransmitter called GABA. The result is a drowsy or calming effect.
  
  Stimulants
• Examples: Methylphenidate (Ritalin), amphetamine/dextroamphetamine (Adderall), and atomoxetine (Strattera).
• Medical uses: Stimulants can be used to treat narcolepsy, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), depression, obesity, and asthma.
• How they work: Stimulants increase brain activity, resulting in greater alertness, attention, and energy.

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Over-the-Counter Drugs
Some people mistakenly think that prescription drugs are more powerful because you need a prescription for them. But it's possible to abuse or become addicted to over-the-counter (OTC) medications, too. For example, dextromethorphan (DXM) is found in some OTC cough medicines. When someone takes the number of teaspoons or tablets that are recommended, everything is fine. But high doses can cause problems with the senses (especially vision and hearing) and can lead to confusion, stomach pain, numbness, and even hallucinations.

What Are the Dangers of Abusing Medications?
Whether they're using street drugs or medications, drug abusers often have trouble at school, at home, with friends, or with the law. The likelihood that a person will commit a crime or have an accident is higher when that person is abusing drugs - no matter whether those drugs are medications or street drugs.

Like all drug abuse, using prescription drugs for the wrong reasons has serious risks for a person's health. Just a single dose of an opioid can lower a person's breathing rate and even kill when the wrong person takes it. This risk is higher when opioids are taken with other substances like alcohol, antihistamines, and CNS depressants.

CNS depressants have risks, too. Reducing or stopping them can lead to seizures. Taking CNS depressants with other medications, such as prescription painkillers, some over-the-counter cold and allergy medications, or alcohol, can slow a person's heartbeat and breathing - and even kill.

Abusing stimulants (like some ADHD drugs) may cause heart failure or seizures, both of which can kill. These risks are increased when stimulants are mixed with other medicines - even over-the-counter ones like certain cold medicines. Taking too much of a stimulant can lead a person to develop dangerously high body temperatures or an irregular heartbeat. Taking several high doses over a short period of time may make a drug abuser aggressive or paranoid. Although stimulant abuse might not lead to physical dependence and withdrawal, the feelings these drugs give people may cause them to use the drugs more and more often so it becomes a habit that's hard to break.

The dangers of prescription drug abuse can be made even worse if people take drugs in a way they aren't supposed to. Ritalin may seem harmless because it's prescribed even for little kids with ADHD. But when a person snorts or injects Ritalin, it can be serious. There are also many variations of the same medication (the dose of medication and how long it stays in the body may vary). The person who doesn't have a prescription may not really know which one he or she has.
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Probably the most common result of prescription drug abuse is addiction. People who abuse medications can become addicted just as easily as if they were taking street drugs. The reason many drugs have to be prescribed by a doctor is because some of them are quite addictive. That's why most doctors won't usually renew a prescription unless they see the patient - they want to examine the patient to make sure he or she isn't getting addicted.

Finally, never use someone else's prescription, and don't allow a friend to use yours. Not only are you putting your friend at risk, but you could suffer, too: Pharmacists won't refill a prescription if a medication has been used up before it should be. And if you're found giving medication to someone else, it's considered a crime and you could find yourself in court.

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Links to Information on Other Drugs:
Heroin
Ecstasy
Cocaine

There are several resources available throughout Santa Barbara County to help you. Click on the link below to find out more.
Local Resources